Off at odds of 18-1, Beauty Is Blind popped pocket to light the board bright in the first evening back racing at Hiawatha Horse Park Saturday (June 6).
Driver Andy Moore placed Beauty Is Blind behind Panerai, who cleared command from post 7 to set the pace uncontested through fractions of :28.1, 1:00.1 and 1:29.2. Dandy Idea, the 5-2 favourite, lost contention with the field when going on a gallop past the half while Panerai owned a two-length lead through most of the mile.
Though Drogon came first over passing the half, Panerai’s main challenge came as Beauty Is Blind angled off the leader’s helmet spinning off the final turn. Panerai’s lead diminished to a half length into the stretch as Beauty Is Blind edged closer to the front and Littleannieoakley charged towards the top late. At the finish Beauty Is Blind had a head in front of Littleannieoakley with Panerai fading to third in a 2:00 mile.
A three-year-old filly by Betterthancheddar, Beauty Is Blind competes for trainer Jack Wray and co-owners Frederick Woolford and Douglas Dunbar. She paid $39.70 to win.
Later in the 10-race card Furiosa scored a major upset when romping in a $3,600 conditioned pace as the longest shot on the board.
Also driven by Andy Moore, Furiosa raced eighth to the quarter until given his cue to go for the lead passing the half. The five-year-old Rambaran mare swept by the field before three-quarters and blew clear from there, hitting the finish eight-and-three-quarter lengths better than odds-on favourite Together We Run in second.
With $196 in the win pool, a single bettor cashed on Furiosa’s victory as she went at odds of 146-1, returning $295.70 to win.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Hiawatha Horse Park.